Monitoring Desk
Luckily, the age of the internet means that each of us have access to our own personal culinarily school. However, as the internet is ever expanding, so is the information in it which can leave us all a little confused.
To help, we’ve compiled a list of tricks every cook should know to make their cooking experience a little more efficient and their food a little more delicious!
Don’t overcrowd the pan
If it looks like you have to squish that extra chicken breast into the pan, then don’t do it. Like you may manage to get it into the pan, you risk the heat distributing unevenly across the pan which would at best affect the flavour of the food and at worst, create a health risk.
Let red meat sit before cutting it
Even the best meat can become dry if not handled properly. After cooking your steak, place it onto a cutting board and let it rest for about 5 minutes before cutting into it. This way the steak with retain its juices and not be dry upon cutting.
Store spices in the right location
To ensure longer shelf life for your spices, store them in a cold and dark space. Storing them above your stove can alter their flavour due to the increased humidity and heat.
Shut the stove off before eggs are done
The key to perfect eggs is to not overcook them. Regardless of the kind of eggs your making – scrambled, fried or even poached – turn off the stove a few minutes before your eggs are done. The heat remaining in the pan/pot will cook the eggs to perfection.
Chop herbs with salt
To avoid your herbs slipping all over the cutting board, sprinkle some salt onto it first. The salt will create and grip and prevent your herbs flying all over the place.
Add salt to boiling pasta water
The one is a simple, but golden rule of cooking. Adding salt to your pasta water will season your pasta all the way through. Add about 1-2 tablespoons of salt in a large pot of water and stir it to dissolve it completely, after this add the pasta and the salt will distribute in the pasta evenly.
Use pasta water to make pasta sauce
Waste not, want not – plus it does wonders for the flavour! The salty past water will add an amazing flavour to your pasta sauce and the left over starch in the water with help balance its consistency really well.
Keep the root of onions intact to help with slicing
Onions are arguably one of the most tedious and sometimes painful food to cut. Make the process faster and organized by keeping the root of the onion, peel it, cut it horizontally and then cut vertically. You’ll have the most perfectly diced onions.
